This essay will look at how social scientist explain human behaviour scientifically, and the merits and limitations of the applications of the scientific method in explaining such behaviour. The first part of the essay will focus on the major components and the goals of the scientific method, while the second part will focus on the difficulties that social scientists have encountered and how they have been complying with the scientific principles.
Before going into further details, the terms social science and science should first be defined. Social science refers to “the study of society and the way people live” (Social Science, n.d.), while science refers to “a particular subject that is studied using scientific methods (Science, n.d.). The major components of the scientific method are concepts, classifying, theorizing and model building.
The usage of concepts allow us to “ask precise questions”, so that we can be “able to answer these questions with precise answers” (OUHK, 2017, p.8). Before using a concept, we need to clarify or define the concept, since it is important for social scientists to use “broadly similar definitions of concepts” and “explain clearly any variations which they adopt” (ibid, p.8).
However, the clarification of concepts has its shortcomings. For example, when clarifying a concept, various acceptable
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In spite of the fact that “there is a lot of regularity in what people do”, so that many regular patterns of behaviour are repeated in similar ways, people can decide what to do or not do completely based on one’s own choice. These two distinct opinions emphasize the structure of society and the importance of human agency respectively. They are equally important, but that makes social scientists unable to predict correctly what will happen, as influenced by the unpredictable decisions of human individuals (ibid,
In philosophy, it is important for definitions to be involved when studying. The foundations of philosophy are built on questions. When first being introduced to a definition one becomes enlightened. In the essay The Value of Philosophy, becoming enlightened is explained as “Philosophy, though unable to tell us with certainty what is the true answer to the doubts which it raises, is able to suggest many possibilities which enlarge our thoughts and free them from the tyranny of custom” (Russel 15). Definitions in philosophy are only a stepping stone that lead an individual into a direction that logical thinking should go towards. When dealing with definitions, it is critical that the definition does not invoke confusion. In the essay Improving Your Thinking Barker describes what a definition shouldn’t be. “A stipulative definition should not assign to a word that already has an established meaning some new meaning that is likely to be confused with it” (Barker 55).
How do we define a “concept” in our field? (2 points) Hint: this resembles a mathematical equation.
According to our text, social psychology is a science that studies the impact of our
By explaining the humanistic perspective proposed by him, the author convincingly demonstrates that sociology is more than its methods, such as surveying, or its theories. There are many sociological theories, but they all are part of the fundamental vision of all processes as the effects of human interactions. Berger (1963) often refers to his own experience of being a sociologist, and this adds reliability to his arguments. Also, despite beginning the book in a light and humorous manner, the author further turns to complicated scientific notions and perspectives; this shows his expertise and makes the book’s major thesis more persuasive.
Social sciences: Social sciences are classes that discuss how individuals and society have a relationship. Some of these classes are psychology and economics.
There were three questions asked at the start of this paper. What is Social Psychology all about? Why is the study of it so important? Is there truly a purpose or benefit from the findings of the studies? Social Psychology is the study of attitude, behavior, and interactions of individuals within a group setting. You may have heard the saying "for every action, there is a reaction," Social Psychologists observe and interpret behaviors in effort to provide further explanation of cause and effect. It is thru the studies of Social Psychology we can learn how to get into the cause and begin to foresee patterns of reactions. A simple yet sophisticated theory.
The definition provides insight into
Concepts and Theories - Clarity, Precision, Significance, and Relevance - Our concepts should be clear and precise. Our theories and concepts should be the most significant and relate to our reasoning.
Psychology is the scientific “study of the mind” (Gross, 2015) and behavior, which includes the study of humans and animals. There are various approaches in modern psychology. A theoretical approach is a perspective (view) about human behavior, there may be several different theories within an approach, but they all share these common assumptions and principles. (McLeod, 2007). A theory is an attempt by theorists to try to explain behavior. Theories are not facts but can be verified by testing. Theories can then be evaluated which I aim to do through this essay, where I will briefly explain the theoretical approaches in psychology and aim to focus on an analysis for each perspective which consist of the psychodynamic, humanist, cognitive and behavioral approaches where I will analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each approach separately.
In psychology there are many different approaches to understanding the complexity of human behaviour, all of which have different methods of testing what factors can influence behaviour, varying from scientific to pure assumption in an attempt to understand human behaviour. This essay with explain the key ideas of the behaviourist, biological and humanistic approaches and will compare and contrast their assumptions on human behaviour.
There are two different types of knowledge people have: common knowledge that we just accept and knowledge that is obtained through direct observation and personal experience. However most of what we know can’t be learned through experience but social structure allows us to believe what others tell us, as he states, “The basis of knowledge is agreement.” To achieve an agreement, both science and sociology require three major things: theory, data collection, and data analysis. However in science, the data must make sense and doesn’t contradict the actual observation. Social research looks for patterns of regularity in social life of
This concept, despite its variety of meanings and definitions, is used to refer to many
In social theory, there exists a long-standing debate over whether structure or agency is central in shaping human behavior. While structure is the underlying set of rules for how a society works, agency is the ability of the individual to exert choice
The purpose of this essay is to outline and evaluate at least three psychological perspectives of human behaviour. The three approaches that will be summarised are humanistic, social learning theory and the Biological approach. They will also be criticised and compared to one another. A brief description on psychology will occur, and there will also be a short summarisation on some key early influences of psychology, from its origins in philosophy.
Social Sciences use various types of research depending on the type of social science and the nature of the subject matter. ☒TRUE or ☐FALSE